Wednesday, June 03, 2015

Jumping On The Essential Oil Band Wagon

It's true. I've decided to drink some of the Essential Oils Kool-Aid. And for what it's worth, it doesn't taste too bad, either! Today I thought I would share a little of what I hope is just the tip of the ice berg of our EO experience.

What made you want to try EO? I first heard about EO from a friend in our Life Group at church who was using them. She was using them for several reasons and only had great things to say about them. She offered for me to come over to her house and we'd have an "oil party," but I was skeptical and never did. Then I read how Cyndi was using them HERE and HERE and that's when my curiosity got a little more piqued.When did you decide to use EO? My daughter and I both suffer with migraine headaches. I believe mine or more hormonal in nature, and hers may be, too {She's 10, but has been having them since she was 5 or 6}, but we've been to a pediatric neurologist and before we do an MRI, I wanted to try the oils on her to see if they would work. After an extremely bad migraine with Alise - and having one myself on Mother's Day weekend that lasted FOUR days - I finally made a decision to try them. Wayne was actually the one who found a package of six EOs for migraine sufferers on Ebay {He's such the bargain shopper!}. They were not expensive at all and I was very excited to get them in and try them. I also wanted to begin using them for some female symptoms that I plan to share about in a future post.Some may frown or have doubts about ordering oils off Ebay, but honestly I didn't think anything of it. Wayne read the reviews of the seller and their website and we felt comfortable making the purchase. Honestly, we didn't want to spend a lot of money - still skeptical, I guess.What EOs do you use? The migraine package Wayne ordered had eucalyptus, orange, peppermint, lavender, rosemary and tea tree. As of now, these are the only ones we've ordered, but I've been doing some research and I'm interested in trying some others.Did EOs work for you? I have used the peppermint and eucalyptus for normal headaches and yes, they did work. Was it instantaneous? No. But neither is two Excedrin and a regular Coke, which is normally what I have to do as well as lock myself in a dark room for hours. As of this writing, I have yet to use the oils on one of my migraines, so I'm curious as to how effective they will be. Alise has complained of two headaches as of this writing, and I used the same oils on her, and her headache went away. But I don't think she was in full blown migraine mode, either. I'd like to think I caught them early. I simply mixed the two oils on my fingers and applied them to our temples and massaged them in to the skin when we feel a head ache coming on. Each morning, we both rub peppermint oil on the back of our neck near the hairline as a preventative.I have also used the lavender oil and I LOVE IT!! For the two weeks we've had the oils, I have slept like a rock! I diffuse some lavender in our bedrooms about an hour and a half before we go to bed. I turn down the air and close the bedroom doors to cool the temperature in the rooms and capture the scent. When we go to bed, Alise and I apply lavender to our temples and across our forehead. We have slept so well and I've slept better than I have in weeks!Alise mixes one drop of tea tree oil with her face wash at night for what I call, "baby acne." They're not really "pimples" per se, but just little bumps on the surface of her cheeks. The bumps are gone and her skin is so smooth, now.I love the orange oil as a "pick-me-up" and I use it as a living room scent. Sometimes I diffuse lavender and orange together.So far, I am very pleased with the results. My favorite oils as of now are lavender and peppermint.Will you be trying other EOs in the future? Yes, I've been doing some research and I must say that it's all a little overwhelming. It seems like there is so much duplication in what each oil can do, and of course, I'm thinking, well, I want to use the one that works the best. My main goal is to begin using them much in the same was as Cyndi does - for women's health reasons. I've started an 'Essential Oils' board on Pinterest {click HERE} where I am pinning "beginner type" articles/posts for uses and oils I'd like to try in the future. Feel free to follow my board.What suggestions do you have for anyone interested in using EOs? Pick your most important issue or concern, and research an oil to use for it. You don't have to buy a whole "set" and don't worry about all the mixing that can go along with it {another overwhelming thought!}. With me, it was easy because migraines plague me and now they're also affecting my daughter. And once I began researching which oils to use, I also saw that some of the same oils can help other issues that I have. Kinda like a "two-for one." There is an oil for just about everything under the sun! These are my own thoughts from my own research and experiences. I am not endorsing a particular brand of oils or a particular process. But if you have questions, please feel free to leave a comment or email me and I'll be happy to answer them. I plan to write about more of my experiences with essential oils in the future.

13 comments:

EOs are very effective in treating many issues. Peppermint is a great one for migraines, as well as clearing the mind before a test (Katie had one teacher who always kept peppermint candies in his room for his students for this purpose). The thing to be cautious about is the "quality" of the oils. I would research the tea tree oil a bit more, as yes, it is good for clearing the skin, but I have heard it is not good for adolescents as it messes with their hormones. We love to diffuse EOs throughout our home, rather than chemical air fresheners. My fav combo right now is Lemon, Lavender and Rosemary.

Thanks for watching out for me and letting me know about the tree oil, Lauren. I will definitely research it some more - probably take her off of it completely. God knows I don't need her hormones whacked out anymore than they need to be!! I have the three oils for your favorite combo. I will have to try it! Thanks for mentioning it!

I recently stepped on the bandwagon as well. EO's are amazing!! My favorites are the peppermint oil and lavender oil but there's so many more I want to try. I'm really glad he's working for you and your daughter and I hope they continue to so you stay healthy so you can have fun this summer!! :-)

Whit, how big is your diffuser? I run the heck out of mine, but I think our house is so big and open that I can't smell them. I can defintely smell them in the bedrooms, though, just not the living room so much!

My mom is on the EO bandwagon too. I have a couple that she's given me, but I don't use them too often so I don't know how I feel about them. (I also don't really have specific purposes for them, i.e. migraines.) I'll have to pay close attention next time I use one!

I just jumped on the band wagon too. My husband and I are both medical people and we try to stay away from medicine as much as possible(: I started using them for my daughter's allergies and for natural insect repellent for our dogs. I signed up with Young Living and have been so impressed thus far. If you need any help, I will do my best. I am still researching too! Susan

I am so intrigued! I don't get migraines but I do get hormonal headaches 2-3 days in a row each month. Olivia has such trouble falling asleep and takes melatonin because she has such a hard time falling asleep, I would love to get her off that even though it is natural, I wonder if the lavender would work. I am going to follow your board!